Ironing machine



Nov. 28, 1933. w. J. ASHER IRNING MACHINE Filed Feb. 20, 1929 4Sheets-Sheet l m. m Kyi V Nov. 28, 1933. w 1 ASHER 1,937,421

IRQNING MACHINE Filed Feb. zb, 1929 4 sheets-sheet 2 Nov. 28, 1933. w ,1Asl-IER 1,937,421

IRONING MACHINE Filed Feb.. 20. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Nov. 28. 1933. w,ASHE'R 1,937,421

IRONING MACHINE Filed Feb. 20, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 patented Nov.e zs1933 Y Y '71,937,4211.

1 UNET STATES PATENT 0F FICE moNiNd MACHINE f William J. Asher, ColoradoSprings,-.Colo. Application February 2051929. serial No-341551o e 21claims. (o1- css-7 9) This inventionrelates to Yironing machines and thearticles pass from one moving element to anmore particularly to the typeadapted to handle other, and hence each succeeding element is; articleswhich varyin size', shape andthickness. driven at a speed slightlygreater thanV the ele` VIn ironing machines of this character, Wrinmentfrom whichthe articleV is passing.v

*klinghas been one ofthe greatestproblems, and It is therefore;anotherobject of the invention i60 A the problem has been complicated by thedesirto provide a slightly increased speed for the`` abilityofhaving themachine rcapable ofhandling 4greater numberof the moving elements ofthenot only flat articles such as sheets, blankets and machine, in theorder in which they come into@ handkerchieis, but also garments Vor'v`irregular. Contact with-thegoods intheirvpassagethrough l'shape oryprovided withbuttons. Obviously, the the.fmachine. c Y Y 1 j V Y65provisions for preventing the breakingoi buttons At` the front end oithemachine an'` apron;` and for handling a varied character of worlrrenloosening roll is provided-for one ofthe cylinder der. it very difficultto preventwrinklingfor all aprons, Whichroll, together with the do'ingtypes of work. A e knivesandiitsrassociated rolls, arezall mounted f l5`It has been proposed to provide a power-ironupon a rocking frame. Doingtapes are mount- 70 e ing machinewith a single roller orefectinga edupon a roller carried by this frame so as tosimultaneousadjustment ofthe tension ofboth coact withthecylinder apron-to. hold the articles,aprons which guide the work. in its path ,through thereon intransitfro'm the first cylinderr to the c the machine. In practice, theaprons stretch or point wherethe two `cylinderaprons meet to recontractunequally. and hence the single adjust-l ceive the'goods. Atensioningroller is provided-*75 ment was not entirely satisfactory.`Inl the pres-r for the doiing tapes so that When the rocking entmachine, means are provided for adjusting. frame is raised tov permitaccess to the dong eachof the aprons independently of the other, barorto relieve vthe tension in the cylinder apron,y

v so as to keep eachapron under'the exact necesthelgrav-ity actuatedtensioning device Willifuncsary tension. tion to tension the doilingtapes at the same time. 80

It is therefore the object of the present inven-4 Hence, whenever theoperator raises the rockingl tion to provide a power ironing machinewith, frame, boththe apron andthe tapes are automatimeans for adjustingAthe aprons independently, callyV tensioned, and it is not possible foran oper'-y whereby wrinkling of the work` is avoided. v atorto` neglecttensioning these elements` when It has been customary-.to vprovide twoironing getting ready to operate thefmachina .l 85 cylinders eachprovided with aprons Iwhich carry It is therefore azfurther'objeet ofthe invention the work around one cylinder and then convey to. provideVa tensioningV device for the doilng vit to the second cylinder-,andpresent it thereto. `tapes associated with the apron at the front endVarious pathsY for these apronslhave been pro- Vof theironing machine,whereby the tapes are posed, and heretofore it was thought desirable forautomatically tensionedi-when the doing knives 90 Various reasons'tohave the aprons make a'sharpA- are raised. angle in the path between thecylinders. How- With the for-mer lmachines the ironed goods ever, itisbelievedthat this arrangement of the discharged at the` delivery endwere so highly` apronscauses the greater portion of the'wrine heatedfrom the ironing, that the'hands of the 40 kling of the goods which wasmet within practice. operators would be burned when these articles95 Thepresent inventioncontemplates the bringwere grasped without first beingallowed to cool.

ing of the two aprons together to secure the goods, This difficulty isavoided in the present-invention ata point immediately above the firstcylinder by a cooling deviceV which receives the highly and passing theaprons togethertcward the bote heated articles from the apron'and passesthemV tom of the -second cylinder along aplane which uponaseries'oftapes toa receivingy boardfor 100 is as nearly as possible horizontal.table. Provision is made for the access of the It is therefore theobject of the present inven,r air to almost the entire surfaceof-thearticles in.'r tion to provide means for transmitting thework transitthrough this mechanism, which lhas an flOm One Cylinder 150 aIlOtheIWithout Wrinklng agitating portion to wave the'articles to and fro. thework. y This yarrangementcools the articles muchA more 105 The relativespeeds of the various parts is of rapidly than when passing in a simpletransitory considerable importance, and the applicant has path,` andarticles discharged therebyV are suideveloped the ratios whichproducethe most satciently cooled to be easily handled; v. A i isfactoryresults. In this ,respect it has been It is thereforeanother object ofthe invention found desirable to increase slightly the speed as todischarge the articles from the ironing ma- 110 chine in a cooledcondition so as to permit comfortable handling thereof.

Other objects and features of novelty will be apparent as the followingdescription proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawingsyin which:

Figurel 1 is a side elevation of the entire power operated ironingmachine according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic view of the rolls and aprons employed in thepresent machine, showing the path of the aprons through the machines;

Figure 8 is an enlarged detail view of the front or feeding end of themachine, showing the dcfng bar and the tensioning devices for theaprons;

Figure 4 is an enlarged detail view of the delivery portion of themachine, showing particularly the cooling device; and

Figure 5 is a partial section on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

The general arrangement and proportions of the machine will be evidentfrom an inspection of Fig. l of the drawings. All the operating partsare mounted in parallel side walls of a large frame, the near wall ofwhichis indicated at 10.

The frame is provided with a bottom portion 11 which may be mounted upona substantial base,

although there is little vibration due to the oper-v ation of themachine, inasmuch as all of the larger operating parts merely rotateabout fixed axes. The side members such as 10 have numerous openings forthe reception of shafts,'etc.,V and other openings are provided forlightening.. Y Two of these openings are indicated atA 12 and 13respectively,l andit will be understood that corresponding openings areprovided in the opposite side of the frame, as the two sidefrnembers aresubstantially symmetrical. Supporte'dupon the lower edges of the fouropenings are four bearings, each of which is indicated generally at B.The opposed bearings of each pair are in axial alignment and serve tosupport for rotation the cylinders 14 and 15. These cylinders 14 and 15are heated by steam or other heating agents in any well-known manner,such as by steam intro` duced through the supply pipe shown at'16 so asto constitute the ironing cylinders. The cylindrical faces of thesemembers constitute ironing surfaces for the goods which pass through themachine. They are driven in opposite directions forming constantlyoperating walls and at slightly different speeds. In actual operation ofthemachine the cylinder 14 is driven faster than the cylinder l5 by thearrangement of the drive gearing now to be described.`

The drive pulley for both cylinders is indicated at 17, and may bedriven by any suitable source of power, and provided with a clutchmechanism of a known type by which the pulley may be operatively engagedwith or disengaged from the drive shaft 18 of the machine. Upon thisshaft 18 is rigidly secured a pinion 20 which meshes with a gear wheel2l xed upon an idler shaft 22. The teeth of the gear 21 mesh with -thoseof a second gear 28 mounted upon an idler shaft 24. Idler shafts 22 and24 carry pinions 25'and 26 respectively, which pinions are in engagementwith large gears 27 and 2S lwhich are Vlxed upon the axles of t-` eheated cylinders.

. From this `arrangement' of gearing -it follows that'the cylinders aredriven in oppositedirections at substantially the same speed. However itwill also be observed thatthe gear wheel 21 is of slightly less diameterthan the gear wheel size, this results in the cylinder 14 being drivenat a somewhat faster rate of speed than the cylinder 15.

Associated with each of the cylinders is an endless apron. The apron ofthe first cylinder is indicated at 50, and that of the second cylinderat 51. These aprons are guided over rollers hereinafter to be fullydescribed and are employed for the purpose of holding the articles to beironed in close contact with the cylinders as the cylinders revolveabout their axes. The aprons further cooperate in transferring thegoods, ironed onone side by the first cylinder, to the second cylinderwhere the articles are ironed on the opposite side. The aprons may be ofvarious materials, as is wellknown, but with the arrangement of pressureand guide rollers which I employ in the present machine, the relativelyinexpensive cotton aprons may be employed with very satisfactoryresults. The arrangement of aprons is most clearly illustrated in Fig.2. Here the end of the feed Yboard is indicated at 52 overlying the feedbasket 44, and this end is shown to be positioned in close proximity tothe feed tape roll 45, over which pass the feed tapes.

'on tothe top of pressure roller 53 are drawn downwardly between theapron 50 and the outer cylindrical ironing surface of cylinder 15. ThisAcylinder is in constant rotation andv the endless apron50 constantlypasses on to the same at one point, i'. e., between pressure roller 53and the cylinder, and is constantly removed at another point, i.' e.,adjacent the apron drive roll 54. Very nearly the entire surface of thecylinder, therefore, is covered by the apron and the goods being ironedare tightly pressed thereby, during the period of their travel aroundthe cylinder axis, against the cylinder. In addition to pressure roller53, additional pressure rollers are provided indicated respectively at48, 55, 56 and 57, the function of these rollers being solely to pressthe apron tightly vagainst the cylinder. The rollers are thereforeprovided with layers of relatively soft materials on their surfaces,such as rubber or cloth.

After the articles being ironed have passed around the cylinder 15 frompressure roller 53 to the proximity of the drive roller 54, they areremoved from the ironing surface by the dofilng knives 58 mounted upon aseries of pads 59 that are pivoted to the transversely extending doflingbar. rear of the` cylinder 15 by the apron 50 and its cooperating tapes60, clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3. These tapes are spaced between thedoifing knives 58, and their spaced relation permits escape of freesteam from the articles being lironed at this portion of their path oftravel.

lapronand'cause thein to drop ontovthe secondY apron tov loeY carriedvthereby to the second/cyl-r` inder to the-point over the roller-64where the: aprons separate.` The first apron 50 passes over` the vguiderollerA 65, take up l,roller 66,` guide rollers6'7, 68 and 69 andoutside of the-.pressuree rollers 57,56, 5 5 and 53, and returnsfto'thefirst cylinder in the direction of theA arrow.

Thesecond apron 51 passes around roller 64 on to the` surface` of thecylinder 14, andis held; thereagainst by the pressure rolls-64,63andr49,u

and then leaves .theV cylinder over the aprondrive rollerv '7d-,guideroll '71 and drive roll '72, adjusting roll '73, and guide roll '74,thence-downwardly overthe common guide-rolls -61 and 62.V The articles,after being .ironed by both cylii'iders'are` removed from the` surfaceof the second. cylinder4 bydofng knives indicated .at '7 5and deliveredloy` means to be hereinafter described.

It should henotedthat the-twoaprons 50 and 51 travel together hetweenthecylinders- 14 and` l5 along-a predetermined and unchanging path,as-.each of-the rolls 61, 62, 63-and -'74-are mounted on fixed axes.Thereare` no adjustahlerolls inthe common path., as the take up rolls66'and. '73 are located in the return paths of their respectiveaprons.By having the two apronscometogether lahcvethe rst cylinder, and notseparate -or turn until underfthe second cylinder, av

verylongiiat reach is provided. The Contact vof the two hot aprons withthevgoods for this long reach facilitates:the` drying of the goods;

Where the :two aprons separate, after conveying the goods to thesecondcylinder, a doffer brush 43 is-` mounted in contact with the rstapronV where it passesover the'roller G5 Yso as to remove any articleswhichl tend to cling to the iirst inder.

TheY apron 50 is driven frointhe first apron drive `roller 54, whichisdriven froinftherst cylinder drive gear 28,A through theintermediategears 39 and 40 shown in Fig. 3. The gear 40 meshes with thegearl 41- which rotates with the roller 54. As the roller 54 isof`greater diameter than the gear 41, thespee'd of' the-apron 50`isslightly greater than the peripheral speed of theA cylinder 15. Thecylinder is also larger than the gear 28 but the different ratio givesthe greater.A

speed.- v

The apronl is driven from the secondapron drive roll '72, Which'carrieska sprocket30 of.. slightly smaller diameter driven by a chain 31v`passing, overidlcr sprocketY 32in,v its path from a sprocket 33 carriedVby a ygear 34 ofv slightly smaller diameter which mesheswiththe secondcylinder drive gear 27. the apron 51 at a speed slightly greaterthan theperipheral speed of the cylinder 14. f

The mounting of the auxiliary tapes ,60gisi clearly shown in Fig. 3.Referringto this iigure,

a rocking traine 86 is shown as mounted on apivot 81 ahcve the irontportion of the cylinderl This frame' has journaled-thereinthe axisY 82of `the drive roll 54 for the apron 50 and the axle 83 of the doffertape drive roll 84. Doffing knife pads 59 Vsupported by abar thaty isfastened to a pair of brackets bolted direct toeither main frame lo.'The-frame 80 further provided with extensions to which are pivotedshorter arnis 91 providing journals for the axle of the dofer tape pinchroll 92.

It will he apparent that the apron 50 coming on of the'cylinder 15passes around the drive roll 54 and extends back over the cylinderVandpasses over the 'oai-e apron roll 61. The doffer rThis `arrangenfientdrives tapeg60; which passes ',:between the doi-Eer knivesrextendsaround'the. roll 54 on top Yofthe apron 50;, butleaves'l itVbefore itureaches.thev roll 61 and passes back over thedrive roll 84,being forcedthereagainsthy the pinchL roll. 92.. The

doicr; tapes.`r 60 `are slack beyondrthe drive' roll 84,.y andpassunder.thedoiier bar andn pads 59 and; extend up; around them andpass betweenthedoier knives. 58and extend. thereheyondto f overlie. the; apron,drive roll 54.

The. bight ofgthe doffer tape 60 passes overV the doffer4 tape; stretchrtube. 93, the journals oi which arecarried byfreely pivoted arms 94, thepivotal `supports of which are adjustably secured by, bolts-95 .in slotsr96 rin 'each of theinain'side frames'A of the machine. This arrangementprothesame time that thefapron 50 is tensioned. It

ofthe tapes 60, produced ley` the upward move-- nient oftherolls54and 84about`pivot 81, will be taken up bythe roller 93 Vunder the. influenceofA gravity. Y'

yFor the removal of the ironed .goods from the i machine, aerating tapesare'provided which aresomewhat-similar to the domng tapes 60,. and theirarrangement is shown in detail in Fig.r4. Thesev tapes .pass betweendoihng knives ,'75 carried hy the doflng pads 101 and pass over theVaerating tape drive roll 102 which is journaled main frame of themachine. A pair o swinging arms 105, are pivoted oneach end of the shaft104 and terminate at their Vlower ends `in sleeves 106 whichslidablyreceiverods 115'?, learring lrolthe sleeves 106carries a-l'ug 1,06"toene of which is ypivoted a.connectingrodlil),` which at its other end"is eccentrically pivoted on a disc 110. Also pivoted to the.` lugs 10,6aresleeves 112 carrying sliding armsliS havingv rollers 114 journaled intheir lowerlends. f l

.The aerating tapes 100, Apassing hetweenther doling knives 75, extendover the drivefroller 102 and down under theroileitlii, then pass upwardover .a bare roll 1715 journaledfin the arm,g1'03, andf'then hack underthedoihngfbar and-,pads 101:

Cooperating with the aerating tapes 100 are aerating tapes120which alsopass over the roller 102V outside ofthe tapes. 100. The outerl tape-s1201then pass .down aroundthe roller 108,` and upxover aniadjustabletake up roller i211, which is journaled in theouter ends of sliding rods122 "carried'by sleeves123 rigidly secured to thearrn 103.. The Vforwardends ofthe auxiliary tapes then pass around a driving roll,125 journaledin arnis V126 integral with the arms-103. y

Thedisk 110 is provided'with sprocket teeth, andserves to drive both'sets of aeratingtapes,

vas well'as to oscillate VtheV swinging arrn 165. A

drive chain'f140 driven Vhy the sprocket 110`passes over an idler 1'41carried bythe arm 131, which swingsabout the center of roll 125 and thenpassesunder the sprocket 142 whichdrives the roll 125 and the outertapes 120. The chain 140 then passes over sprocket: 143,r Which drivesthe `vides for the tensioningY of the doffer tapes at.

,wilibe `obviousfronian inspection of Fig. 3 that upon a shaft 104inanarm 10,3 rigid with the YVlers108 journaledloetweentheir ends. Eachof loll inner tape driving roll 102and its tapes 100. The arm 131carries the brush roll andadjusting arni for the idler sprocket to takeup slack in brush roll drive chain. v

Rigid with the disk 11() is a gear 144 meshing with a pinion 145 keyedon a shaft 146 journaled in one orn the side frames 10. Also keyed onthis shaft is a smaller gear 147, whichl meshes with the second cylinderdrive gear 27. Withthis arrangement the doffer tapes 100 and theaerating tapes 120 are driven at speeds slightly greater than thesurface speed of the cylinder 14.

1t will be readily apparent that the articles held against the cylinder14 by the apron 51 will be removed therefrom by the doilng llrnives 75,slightly below the point where the apron 51 leaves the cylinder 14. andpasses 'back around the roll 7G. The ironed articles will then becarried away by the aerating dofing tapes 100. articles maytend to clingto the apron 5l as it passes upwardly around the roll 70,'and topositively remove these articles a dering brush 43 is mounted to engagethe tapes at this point. The dodng brush shaft is vjournaled in arms 131adjustably carried bythe threaded arms 132 and 133 pivotally secured tothe main frame of the machine. Y.

A sprocket 135 is keyed on the dofring brush .shaft and receives kachain 136 which passes over a take up idler sprocket 137, and a drivesprocle 138 secured to the bare apron roller 7G, which in turn is drivensuitable gearing iron the main gear 27. Thus the dofrlng brush 180 isydriven at a much greater speed than the apron 5l, and in the oppositedirection so as toefiectively dislodge from the apron any articlestending to cling thereto, and drop'theni onto the doiiing tapes 10G.

The ironedV articles on the tape 100 pass ben neath the roller` 125 andengage the auxiliaryl tapes 12e. Then the two sets of tapes 100 and 120together convey the `ironed articles up over they are delivered to thefolding the roll 102 and down to the rollers 114 and 108. As the ironedarticles pass down beyond the roller 102, they are subjected to awaving, to and fro. motion, due to the oscillation of the arrn 105,l

which is imparted to the rollers 114 and 108 and the tapes carriedthereby. The oscillation of the arrn 105 is transmitted by the bar 109from the isk 110 on which it is eccentrically mounted. The relativelylong path from the dong knives 75 to the roller 102, the spaced relationof both sets of' aerating tapes 100 and 120, and the nal agitation intheir downward path to the rollersfouling the apron atthis point, aguard 149 is mounted at the rear end of the folding board toconne the aricles thereon so as to constitute .a receiver for the ironed goods. x

The means for driving the doer brush 43 is shown in detail in Figure 5.It will be observed that a pinion 15G mounted on the doier brush shaft151 meshes with a gear 152 xed on counter shaft 146 so that the doferbrush is driven by power taken from the large ring gear 27.v

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. In an ironing machine, in combination, two

However, some `comprising a pair `ci conveyors each c spaced ironingcylinders, an apron associated with each of said cylinders, a pluralityof rollers for guiding said aprons in unchanging substantially straightparallel downward paths to carry the goods being ironedfroin adjacentthe periphery or" one cylinder to adjacent the periphery of the other,and independent gravityactuated automatic tensioning rollers located inthe return A paths of the respective aprons.

2. 1n an ironing machine, in combination, a fraine, an ironing cylinder,an apron associated therewith, a'roller over which said apron passes,doier tapes contacting with said apron, a pivotal mounting for saidroller permitting it to be raised, a roller over which the doilng tapespass,

. arms rotatably supporting the ends of said roller,

and means carried by the frame upon which the arms are pivotallymounted, said means being adjustable in the frame.

3. 1n an ironing machine having an ironing cylinder, an apron, and aroll over which said roller over which said apron passes, wherebyrocking or" the frame tensions the apron, a strip- Aping rneans and doertapes associated with said stripping means for holding the goods on saidapron after they are stripped from the cylinder, and a gravity actuatedtensioning means for said doier tapes.

5. In an ironing machine, in combination two spaced ironing cylinders,an apron associated with each of said cylinders, each apron adapted tocarry the goods being ironed around its cylinder, and both apronscooperating to carry the goods from the first cylinder to the second,means for stripping the goods from the first cylinder, dofer tapesassociated with said stripping rneans adapted to hold the goods on thefirst apron until it is engaged by the second, and pivotally mountedroller over which said doier tapes pass, which serves as a gravitytensioning device for said doier tapes.

6. In combination with an ironing machine having an ironing cylinder andan apron passing substantially around its periphery and leaving thecylinder to pass around an apron roll, a doliing knife below said apronroll, dcng tapes passing below said knife, a rocking frame pivoted tosaid ironing machine frame and carrying said apron roll, and a roll forsaid domng tapes, whereby upward movement or" said frame moves saidrolls away from said cylinder and releases the tension in said apron, aswingable roll over which no Y said doiiing tapes pass, said swingableroll servingV to tension said tapes as the apron vis tensioned.

7. In combination with an ironing machine, ineans for delivering ironedarticles therefrom, inprising a set of parallel tapes perd access or"air to said articles in transit, and having a common path for theircontiguous sides and means for simultaneously l oscillating said fordrivngeach'of said aprons slightly faster than conveyors together at aportion Yci? the common pathl 3. In combination with. anironinglmachine, means fordelivering ironed articles therefrom,comprising an elevated roller spaced from the lironing mechanism oi saidmachine and a swingfof rollers carriedV bysaid swinging arm, endless'tapespassing together over said elevated'roller and respectively overVsaid pair of rollers, and means, for oscillating said swinginglarinirom a driven element of the machine, said pair of rollers being'respectively` carried by said swinging arm by slidable connections,whereby their weight serves for gravity tensioning of their respectivetapes. l 1

l0. In combination with anv ironing machine including a rotatingdrum andapron associated therewith Yand having a cooling device adapted toreceive goods ironed by the machine and deliver themin a cooledcondition for handling, a rotaryVA brush for doiiing the goods from theironing niachine apron and causing them to fall into position to beengaged by said cooling device.

11. In combination with an ironing machine comprising a cylinder and anapron extending substantially entirely therearound,` said apron leavingthe cylinder at a point above the point where it passes on tov thecylinder, a knife for separating the goods from the cylinder, and adoiiing brush for separating the goods l:from the apron.

12. In combination with an ironing machine having an ironing cylinderand an apron for holding the articles being'ironed thereagain'st for apartei its periphery, said apron leaving said cylinder and passingaround an apron roll, a doling knife below said apron roll for removingthe articles from said cylinder, tapes passing under said doling knifeto deliver the articles from the machine, and a -doi'ling brush incontact with said apron roll to prevent the artiv cles from beingcarried away by Said apron and insuring their delivery by said tapes.

13. An ironing machine comprising in combination, a pair of cylinderseach having an apron passing substantially around the periphery thereof,then leaving its cylinder and passing to a point adjacent the peripheryor the other, said aprons having a common path to convey articles beingironed from the first cylinder to the second,

and a dofng brush located above the end of the common path to preventthe articlesadhering to the first cylinder apron and insuring theirpassing to the second cylinder upon its apron.

14; In an ironing machinecomprising in cornbination a pair or" spacedironing cylinders, an apron passing substantially around the peripheryYof each of said cylinders to hold the goodsbeing ironed thereagainst,means for bringing' vsaid aprons together between the cylinders totransfer the goods from one cylinder to the other, the combination ofmeans for driving the second cylinder slightly faster than the rstcylinder, and means lits associated cylinder.

` l5. Inan ironing machine, in combination, two

lironing cylinders, a :First cylinder and a second cylinder,horizontally spaced apart and mounted Yto rotate inopposite-directionsiaboutparalleli axes, two endless aprons, oneassociated with each cylinder, Yand means forrguiding the aprons so that.they move alongclosed and substantially xed paths in the operation ofthe machine, a portion `of each :apron extending substantially aroundthe cylinderwith whichitis associated, at all times, to'hold flat goodsagainst thecylindrical surface thereof, the first apron, after leavingthe r'st cylinder, passing over the top vci. this cylinder and'beneaththe second cylinder, andthe second apron, after leaving the secondcylinder, passing over'the top ofv this cylinder and to a point abovethe iirst cylinder where it meets the nrst apron, bothaprons thenpassing in close parallel relationship downwardly from this meetingpoint and under the second cylinder to a parting point adjacent the,vsecond cylinder, whereby 'thel goods which have passed around the firstcylinder are conducted and delivered to the second.

f 16. In an ironing machine, in combination, two ironing cylinders, aiirst` cylinder and a second cylinder, horizontally spaced apart andmounted to rotate in opposite directions about parallel axes,

`two endless aprons, one associated with each cylinder, and means forguiding the aprons so thatthey move along closed and substantially fixedApaths in the operation' of the machine, a portion of each, apronextending substantially around the cylinder with which it is associated,at all times, to Yhold iiat goods against the cylindrical surfacethereof, the first apron, after leaving the rst cylinder, passing overthe top of this cylinder and beneath the second cylinder, and thevsecond apron, after leaving the second cylinder, passing overthe top ofthis cylinder and `'to a point above the rst cylinder whereV it meetsthe first apron, both aprons then passing inclose parallel relationshipdownwardly in substantially straight paths fronithis meeting point to apoint beneath` the second cylinder, the parallel aprons making, betweenthese two points, such angles with the horizontal that goods heldtherebetween are supported thereby against downward sliding movementrelatively to the aprons under the influence of gravity, the aprons thencontinuing to a parting point adjacent the second cylinder.

17. In combination with an ironing machine and the ironing apronthereof, means for delivering ironed articles therefrom comprising aconveyor including two sets ofvendlessv tapes, means causing portionsofsaid tapes to move in parallel iso Y adjacent paths so asto engage and`rictionally retain articles therebetween in such manner that largeareasfof both sides of each article are eX- posed to the atmosphere topermit cooling of the articles in transit by contact with theatmosphere.'

o 18. In combination with an ironing machine', means for deliveringironed articles therefrom comprising two sets of endless tapes, guidemeans for said tapes whereby they are caused to move'in parallelvadjacent vpaths for portions of their lengths and to receive and retainbetween them ironed articles, and meansgor oscillating portionsA f ofthe tapes which retain such articles between them and thereby bodilyoscillating such articles to elect cooling thereof.

19. In combination with an ironing'machine, means for positively movingthe goods from the ironing element, means for receiving said ironedgoods and conducting them to a folding board comprising two sets oftapea'means for guiding portions of said sets of tapes respectively inclosely adjacent parallel paths so as to frictionally been ironed so asto permit access of the air t0 substantially the entire surface of thegoods conducted thereby, whereby the goods are cooled suiciently forcomfortable handling at the folding board, and means for supporting andoscillating article retaining portions of said tapes to give the goods ato-and-fro waving motion to facilitate cooling.

v2O. The combination with an ironing machine having a pair of ironingcylinders and a pair of aprons for conducting the articles being ironedfrom one cylinder to another, the rst apron assing orf 01' the firstcylinder and the second apron passing on to the second cylinder, saidaprons having a common path adjacent the second cylinder and separatingadjacent the second cylinder, the second apron passing on to the secondcylinder, of a doi'ing brush positioned to act upon the iirst apron,after it has separated from the second and at a point directly above thesecond apron, for dislodging articles from the iirst apron and causingthem to be deposited by gravity upon the second apron. grip and retainbetween them articles Which have 21. In combination With an ironingmachine, mechanism for conducting` the ironede'oods to a receiver, saidmechanism including tape supporting means, two sets of movable endlesstapes mounted on said means, each tape of one set having a reachdisposed parallel to and closely ad jacent a reach of a tape ci thesecond set and extending longitudinally in the same direction so thatgoods interposed therebetween may be engaged and transported by thetapes, the tapes of each set being spaced apart at such intervals thatthe greater part of the surfaces thus conveyed is exposed to the air,the tape supporting means comprising an oscillating element forsupporting portions of the tapes which are for the time being in Contactwiththe goods so that the goods may be given an oscillatory or wavingmotion when transported.

WILLIAM J. ASHER.

